SNAP

La Grande Farmers Market Manager Jessica Bogard explains how their market can help those in need stretch their dollar. If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail gvaagen@cherrycreekmedia.com

Hopes a COVID-19 stimulus package can be completed before the November election are increasing. With President Trump and many staffers in the White House testing positive for the virus over the last week, Trump has indicated support for a new stimulus package ...

The House of Representatives passed a $2.2 trillion coronavirus aid package that Democrats say is an update to the previous $3.4 billion bill that passed in May. The vote was 214 to 207, with 18 Democrats joining all the Republicans who voted against it ...

On Monday, the USDA extended more than a dozen nutrition program flexibilities during the pandemic. The extension ensures participants in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, better known as WIC, continue receiving the food and health support during the COVID-19 pandemic ...

The USDA has increased efforts over the past couple of months to help make sure Americans have access to food during these uncertain times. "USDA has provided for states to issue emergency supplemental SNAP benefits which is totaling more than $2 billion per month and additional spending in SNAP program," said deputy undersecretary, Brandon Lipps, as he talked about the food stamp progra

Negotiations to finalize the next coronavirus relief package in Congress are far from the finish line, and so is aid for agriculture, according to the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture. The Senate Republican proposal includes a second round of $1,200 stimulus payments for individuals, extends additional unemployment payments by $200 a week through September, and includes su

Earlier this week, the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee approved the fiscal year 2021 agriculture appropriations bill. Committee Chairman Sanford Bishop Jr, a Georgia Democrat, said the bill rejects the Trump administration’s drastic cuts and “instead builds on the four COVID-19 supplemental bills Congress passed this spring.” The bil ...

The Expanding SNAP Options Act of 2020 seeks to increase online Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participation. Introduced last week by Senators Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin, both Illinois Democrats, the bill expands the number of retailers approved for SNAP online ...

On Monday, the Senate Agriculture Committee sent a request to Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue to extend existing flexibilities for SNAP and WIC customers. The Senators seek the extension through September 30, 2020, as authorized by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act ...

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue this week approved 13 states for online food purchases with SNAP benefits. Once operational, online purchasing will be available in 36 states and the District of Columbia, home to more than 90% of SNAP participants ...